In order to accurately describe the final few runs of the second week of training, I have to take you back to the shortest run of the week. Wednesdays are my dedicated rest day during training and while rest days are annoying, I also look forward to them. But this past Wednesday, there was going to be a short run completed on rest day. A year ago a guy asked me if anyone could run, especially a “big” guy. We talked about how running is possible for anyone, the key is to just start, which he did. He started by walking on the treadmill, 15 minutes left him winded, 15 minutes left him exhausted, 15 minutes is what he could give. He continued to work every day, he began to change his diet, and he began to see new results. We would often talk on the phone about how things were going, then we decided to set goals. At the end of January 2015 he set a goal to run a half marathon in February 2016, and with that decision we were off and “running”, (See what I did there) meanwhile he was still walking, still working. He would update me weekly, 20 minutes, 38 minutes, 45 minutes, he kept getting stronger. The question he would always ask me was, “How will I ever finish 13.1 miles?” The answer is simple; you just don’t quit. Several weeks ago we talked and he told me that he felt like he had plateaued, both in his weight loss and conditioning. He was now up to 60+ minutes a day walking with no issues, he was definitely getting stronger. Last week, I was working in his area of the world and we met up for what he thought was going to be a Wednesday morning walk, we didn’t walk the whole time. On this Wednesday we RAN 30 seconds and walked 4 minutes, we destroyed a hill that tried to discourage us and finished 2.5 miles of running excellence. He crushed it plain and simple. Several hours later, he looks at me at lunch and says all morning he has been burning up inside, that he was so full of energy and wished he could just go back out for another run. “Welcome to the Runners High, I would like to introduce you to endorphins!”
I run for a lot of reasons. I have goals that I want to achieve, and work hard to chase of them. But as a runner, watching another runner achieve goals so far out of their comfort zone is ultimately one of the most inspiring things to witness.

This Weeks Totals:

This week ended with 4 solid runs, the final run on Sunday with my son was very cool. But my “Rest Day Run”will be the defining moment of this 2nd week of training.
Training 2.3 – Rest Day 2.5 miles
Training 2.4 – 6.15 miles 52:32
Training 2.5 – 6.26 miles 53:40
Training 2.6 – 7.02 miles 59:23
Training 2.7 – 9.04 miles 1:17:59
Week 2 Mileage Total – 46.55 miles
Shoes – Red/Black Brooks Adrenaline GTS 15

Date– 6/5&6/15
Time – 8:15am
Location-Branson, MO
Distance – 5.01 miles
Duration – 44:54
1.2 It figures, I start my training cycle and BAM! I wake up on Friday with a cold, the kind of cold that starts in your chest and explodes through your nose…ugh. With a foggy head and a 5 hour drive to Branson, MO for a family reunion in front of me, I took a day off. That’s right, the second day of training was an unplanned rest day, double ugh.

1.3 The room is quiet, despite it being occupied by myself, my hot wife and two teenagers at 6:30am. The long drive and good food at the reunion has everyone sleeping soundly, but not me. Behind our hotel is a church with a huge parking lot, I have been sedentary long enough (25 hours), I am going to run. I got changed, left the room dark and walked to the church. It was already pushing 80 degrees and humid, I figured I would just sweat the cold out…triple ugh. The schedule called for 6 easy miles, I ran 5. I listen to an interview with Katherine Switzer while I ran and was inspired by her dedication to the sport. I finished, felt both awesome and extremely drained all at the same time. I walked back to the room kind of expecting a reception of “nice job dad”….they were still sleeping, so I loudly opened curtains and turned on the TV. (Dad of the Year nominee). My run today was fueled by cold medicine and the obsession. I have convinced myself that if I am sick with a cold, that a good run will fix my stuffy head, running nose and scratchy throat, better than NyQuil can. I am a runner, of course I think that, don’t you.

It was anything but warm this morning in Santa Clara. The chill was just enough to make shiver and wonder if I should have dug around my suitcase for my gloves, but that would just be crazy, it is June. I set off on the familiar path that I have been running for the last month while working in California. The first mile borders a busy road and is very nosy, and then it angles back into neighborhoods and is surprisingly peaceful amongst this busy city. The path was busy today with bike riders commuting to work and retirees out for morning walks. I was scheduled to run 6 easy miles for Day 1 of training and I was doing a 3 mile out and back from my hotel. The first 3 were a bit uncoordinated and I could find no real rhythm.. As I was approaching the turnaround point, I passed another runner coming towards me and I recognized the familiar Boston Marathon Finisher shirt she had on, the shirt I so strongly desire to earn one day. I waved and made my turn and proceeded to fall in behind her about 75 to 100 meters back and we ran. I say “we” ran, but I don’t think she had any idea I was behind her. Her pace was so even and her stride so smooth, I began to feel my own run smoothing out. I followed her for 2 miles, until we hit a crosswalk where I caught up and to be honest may have freaked her out when she saw a 6’3” Clydesdale rolling up behind her. She slowed to the side and gave me an odd look, so I smiled and said “nice run” and kept on going, she waved smile back and said “Thanks!” I noticed she then fell in behind me for the remaining of the path, then headed into the neighborhood. Little did she know how she helped me on this run, I am grateful to my “Pacer”

For all 10 marathons, I have trained almost every mile by myself. I wonder what it would be like to run with a group. Being on the road 200 nights makes this difficult, but I think there should be a way.

Who has a suggestion on how I could find running partners as I travel the U.S.?

It’s Christmas day and where do we find Reist? Running of course. Today’s OTR with Reist is right in the middle of his “speedwork” thanks to his new GoPro camera. If your not familiar with speedwork, 800m repeats, 1/4 mile recoveries, you will be today! Make it a part of your training. It’s hard work but well worth it!

HOW: Now that you’ve watched OTR and learned why we do this type of speedwork, the next question is how. It’s simple.

1) Find a track or fairly level road/path. If it is a road/path map out 1/2mile (800m). Most tracks, this is 2x around the track

2) Warm up run. Open up your workout with an easy run that gets your body ready to work. When your sweating… your ready.

3. Speedwork: Run a brisk pace for the duration of 800m. This is to be your maximum speed that you can manage for an entire 800m. (If your familiar with mile repeats, Mens Health suggests subtracting 10 seconds from that pace.) If this is your first attempt at speedwork, don’t overestimate your ability right away. Get a feel for 800m on the first repeat and then adjust on each one going forward

4. After your first 800m, slow down and jog an easy 400m (1/4 mile or 1x around track) recovery run.

5. Repeat the 800m with 400m recovery a few times your first workout*.

6. Each following time you do speedwork, add one 800m repeat as you can*.

It definitely is hard work but running at your maximum capacity is the best way to improve it. By putting in these repeats, you will be able to run faster with the same effort.

*Want more specific advice on how many 800m Repeats are right for your workout? Email runhardalwaysfinish@gmail.com and let us know!

Questions? Leave them in the comments below! Add thoughts on this here as well.

This is a home week for me from traveling, and an off day from running. I decided it was a good day to organize my closet and running gear (maybe I was encouraged to do so by my wife). As I was putting things away, it got me to thinking about how running has changed the way I view things. So, I have decided to share a few:

I was at a stoplight the other day and saw a girl running towards me. Her gait at best was a bit awkward with very small steps and almost no arm movement. I am sure in my BR (Before Running) life; I would have had a sarcastic comment ready to fire as she passed me. Instead I yelled out the window “your stride looks great, run hard!!” Who am I??

In my BR life if I saw a runner on the road instead of the sidewalk I would give him the “get off the road that is what sidewalks are for” glare. Now as I run on the road I give the drivers the ….wait I don’t give them any look, I run on the curb till they pass. In my head though, I am glaring. On a side note, who knew sidewalks are so uneven and so easy to take a biter on, especially at night.

I can honestly say I think motivational running quotes are cool, such as this one:

Every morning in Africa, a gazelle wakes up. It knows it must outrun the fastest lion or it will be killed. Every morning in Africa, a lion wakes up. It knows that it must run faster than the slowest gazelle, or it will starve. It doesn’t matter whether you’re a lion or a gazelle when the sun comes up you’d better be running.

Ok, come on – that’s a cool one.

I think green shoes are cool. Nothing else really to say.

For my birthday this week, my wife gave me a GPS watch that tells me everything I can possibly need to know while I am running. I believe if I move that Bezel fast enough it will tell me this week’s Powerball numbers. My wife is awesome, by the way.

I preach the awesomeness of Body Glide. Just say “amen” and move on.

I have begun writing a blog about my experiences with running. (https://runhardalwaysfinish.com). Dude, I wouldn’t even write a term paper in college and now this…

Here is one last thing. August 14, 2011 I barely was able to finish 2 miles, on November 12, 2011 I ran 20 miles in 3:13:24 9:39min/mil for my week long run. Now that is a BIG change.

On October 5th, 2011 I became a runner. The type of guy I used to snicker at and say “there is a difference between dedication and stupidity.” To understand why this date is significant as my beginning you must understand my running history. In 2007, I was asked to run in St. Louis Half Marathon. I began running in January to prepare for the May race. The day before the race, my wife gave me a membership to a golf course and I blew the race off the next day to play golf! Needless to say, I did not run again until the fall of 2010 when I decided to run a full marathon. My training went downhill with injuries and even though I completed the race, I still did not call myself a runner. I was a basketball player not a runner, I mean I have a car – why run?

So, now this brings me to October 5th, 2011. I have been training since the beginning of September to run in the National Breast Cancer Marathon (26.2 with Donna) in Jacksonville, Florida in February, 2012. I went to my local running store and was fitted for shoes that are for my body type, foot anatomy, and running gait. Erin, the running expert, explained that it would be a good idea for a guy my size (Clydesdale) to have the right gear. I have run a 5k (PR 23:20) and yet still do not consider myself a runner – until the defining moment I’m about to tell you about.

I was in Kearney, Nebraska at a Ramada Hotel. I woke at 6am for my 30 minute run. I got on my gear, made sure I had my anti-chafing cream (which is now my most important part of my gear, Clydesdale duh) and walked to the door looking out into the complete darkness. Oh, I had mapped my run, hydrated, got some carbs in me, (all the stuff Erin at the running store had told me to do) and opened the door. It was RAINING, not drizzling, RAINING. I looked out that door and realized I had to make a decision. Was I taking this running for real or was I back in bed sleeping? Well, I ran – I ran in the rain and the wind and I loved it. I had a 30 mile/hour tail wind for the first mile and half then I realized that I had a Headwind for the mile and half back, I didn’t care! I was a runner now. When I drive down the road and see people running – I get jealous. I see trails and high school tracks and wish I could go for a lap. I even can spot good runs from the airplane as I take off and land each week.

So now – I am THAT guy. I am that guy you see running with that grin and you wonder why? It’s because I am part of an accepting and welcoming community of runners. I ran 15 miles today, not fast, not slow – but I ran and finished, I am a runner.

There is a quote I like – “it’s not amazing I finished, it’s amazing I started in the first place,” (John “the Penguin” Bingham) and that sums it up for me.